Name In Spotlight: Rainbow

Everyone knew Holly Madison was naming her daughter "something unusual", but were we expecting a baby Rainbow Aurora? Probably not. Aurora is a legit name around the world, a beautiful name for sure, but the spotlight tonight goes to Rainbow. Obviously.

My parents told me that they named me Skye because they liked the sound of "sky", and also the image of peacefulness and tranquility a blue sky evoked to them. The added "e" was just an attempt to make it different (my parents loved alternative spellings...). I've always liked my name and always get positive feedback on it, especially for how "unique" it is to most people. It also made me fond of nature names, especially for boys, and I'll probably carry on that naming style with my kids.



But now back to Rainbow, we could probably categorize it as a nature name, right? So why has Rainbow never really been embraced as a possible first name the same way Forest, Sky, Star or Rain have? Some nature names like Cloud haven't because I think it has a harsher sound, but that's not the case of Rainbow, which is actually quite pleasant. The only reason I can think of is its enormous "cuteness" factor. Rain is certainly cute, but Rainbow takes it to a whole new level, with all bright colors, a pot of gold at one of its ends, and maybe even a unicorn flying by. This reminds us all of childhood, and so with a name like Rainbow being eternally associated with our childhood, most people reject it because they want a name that can grow up with a person, and not be labelled as a "kids" name. Of course this notion will be shattered in the future when kids meet grandmothers named Kynleigh, but it takes time to break certain misconceptions about names.

Cuteness is a factor taken more and more into consideration when it comes to choosing a newborn's name, especially if its a girl. But it seems Rainbow might be just too over the top for most people. What do you think? Will we be seeing more kids named Rainbow in the future? Do you like nature names in general? Share with us your opinion.